Friday, August 21, 2009

Chicken Quesadillas with Corn and Summer Squash (another recipe for the prolific Zucchini!)

Do you still have zucchini overflowing your kitchen and garden? Or, does it just jump into your hands at the farmers market, like it did to me this week? I've had a deep love for summer squash since I was a kid and I just can't get enough of it. Of course, growing up we ate it fried (which is divine), or in Zucchini Bread (which is heavenly), but I've been trying to come up with more options, such as the Stuffed Zucchini, that I made earlier this week. Last night I decided to make quesadillas, since dinner was just going to be for Son Number 2, and myself. My fridge is overflowing right now with veggies, so I decided to add them to the quesadillas, which turned out to be a great idea as they were so full of flavor! Quesadillas are easy to make. Just lay a tortilla on a hot pan or griddle and top with cheese and the chicken and the veggies.

Let cook until the cheese is all melty and gooey like, and then top with more cheese and another tortilla. Hold your hand against the top tortilla and gently flip the whole quesadilla over with a large spatula, to brown on the other side. Carefully now, stuff can fall out!

As soon as it's done, take a pizza cutter and cut into fourths and then repeat with the rest of the ingredients. The sauteed vegetables really made these quesadillas! I made 5 total, so my husband and I had leftovers for lunch today and they were still good warmed up. We loved the addition of the squash and corn, so this will be a regular at our house now! I'll tell you how I made them.

CHICKEN QUESADILLAS with CORN and SUMMER SQUASH

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut in strips

juice 1/2 of a lime and 1 T. olive oil, mixed together

1 ear of corn, kernels cut off

1/2 of a small zucchini, seeded and diced

1/2 of a yellow squash, seeded and diced

about 1/2 cup red onion, large dice

diced bell pepper, if desired

about 12 ounces freshly grated Monterrey Jack Cheese

1 package flour tortillas, I used the Fajita size (small)

Lay the chicken strips in a glass pan and mix the juice of the lime with 1 T. olive oil and sprinkle over the chicken. In a medium hot skillet, add 1 T. oil and the corn kernels, the diced zucchini and yellow squash, onion and bell pepper, if using. Season with salt, ground cumin, pepper and a little chili powder, if desired. Saute for 2-3 minutes, just to soften, but leave them crisp tender. Remove veggies to a paper towel lined plate. In the same skillet, add the cut up chicken and season with the same spices used on the veggies. Sorry that I didn't measure, I just always eyeball it. When chicken is white around the edges, turn over and cook until done. It only takes a couple minutes total for the chicken if you slice it fairly thin.

Heat another skillet or griddle to medium high heat. If desired, spray one side of a tortilla with Pam and lay it on the griddle. Sprinkle with cheese. Add a few slices of chicken and some veggies. When cheese melts, add more cheese on top, then another tortilla, and carefully turn it over to brown on the other side. Cut in fourths to eat. Enjoy!

There are short cuts for these quesadillas of course. You can use leftover chicken, either baked or grilled. The same goes for the veggies. Use those leftover grilled vegetables! In fact, the veggies were so good in this, that you could leave out the chicken and they'd still taste great!